Making pesto at home and the cost of basil

[Anonymous]

I use a basic pesto recipe I found on All Recipes. It calls for 3 cups of packed basil. But to get 3 cups I need to spend at least $7 on the basil, this is at Giant or Harris Teeter. How else can I do this? I could grow it myself but we eat it weekly and it doesn't grow very fast. Is there a cheaper grocery store? I don't want to buy it premade...

[Anonymous]

spend the $7

[Anonymous]

Why are you making it at home instead of buying it at costco? Food allergy?

[Anonymous]

I have 3 plants and they last me all summer. You can take a cutting from your basil and put it in water to get roots and grow another once one is getting to big and stalky.

otherwise, buy premade or buy the basil.

Really the most expensive part is good olive oil and parm.

[Anonymous]

I'd keep my Costco membership just for their Kirkland brand pesto.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why are you making it at home instead of buying it at costco? Food allergy?

I dont have a membership and I like to cook.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd keep my Costco membership just for their Kirkland brand pesto.

HA! This was me. It is the only thing that I like at Costco. Now, I just ask my neighbor to get me one when and if she goes.


OP, in some pesto recipes you can do spinach/basil. Obv it tastes different but there are some spinach-ptesto recipes out there

[Anonymous]

I have a basil plant in the window above my sink. I use the leaves to make basil and then they grow back!

[Anonymous]

Yea, the costco pesto was pretty good, but DH prefers we make it from scratch.

I usually grow a ton of basil in the summer, then freeze it with olive oil for the rest of the year. We also make a lot of pesto and freeze it, too.

[Anonymous]

$7 sounds like a reasonable ballpark figure for 3 cups of basil.

[Anonymous]

It's the one thing I usually find to be a bit cheaper at farmer's markets

[Anonymous]

We have three plants going in our house. Grow from seeds and it’s very cheap!

[Anonymous]

I think it's the pine nuts that are expensive. I now use walnuts. I also wait until late August when the basil is 2 foot high to make a giant batch of pesto and freeze it in ice cube trays.

[Anonymous]

It's really only practical when growing it yourself and making pesto to use up the surplus at the end of the season.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it's the pine nuts that are expensive. I now use walnuts. I also wait until late August when the basil is 2 foot high to make a giant batch of pesto and freeze it in ice cube trays.

Yes. I about cried when I burned my pinenuts toasting them. Switched to walnuts and haven't looked back.